DaimlerChrysler to demo in-car wireless HD video

Automaker DaimlerChrysler today previewed a new technology that would let car passengers bring almost any music or photos with them for in-car entertainment. Based on Intel's ultra-wideband (UWB), the system links a car's rear-seat entertainment system to handhelds also equipped with the wireless format, allowing owners of portable media players to view even HDTV-quality movies on the much larger screens found in cars without having to plug in a cable or wire the full length of the cabin.

The car designer says it will show the technology at CES using a custom-configured Mercedes-Benz R500, which will play video from any of the headrest-mounted LCDs in the middle or rear passenger sections. The technology currently exists in prototype form but should become reality within the next few years as UWB filters into the mainstream.